2015–16 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team

The 2015–16 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team represented St. John's University during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were coached by alumni and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame member Chris Mullin in his first year at the school. St. John's home games were played at Carnesecca Arena and Madison Square Garden and was a member of the Big East Conference.

2015–16 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball
Conference	Big East Conference
Record	8–24 (1–17 Big East)
Head coach	Chris Mullin (1st season)
Assistant coaches	Barry Rohrssen Matt Abdelmassih Greg St. Jean
Home arena	Carnesecca Arena Madison Square Garden
Seasons ← 2014–15 2016–17 →

2015–16 Big East men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 6 Villanova	16	–	2		.889			35	–	5		.875
No. 9 Xavier	14	–	4		.778			28	–	5		.848
No. 20 Seton Hall †	12	–	6		.667			25	–	9		.735
Providence	10	–	8		.556			24	–	11		.686
Butler	10	–	8		.556			22	–	11		.667
Creighton	9	–	9		.500			20	–	15		.571
Marquette	8	–	10		.444			20	–	13		.606
Georgetown	7	–	11		.389			15	–	18		.455
DePaul	3	–	15		.167			9	–	22		.290
St. John's	1	–	17		.056			8	–	24		.250
† 2016 Big East tournament winner Rankings from AP poll

They finished the season with a record of 8–24, 1–17 in Big East play to finish in last place in conference. They lost to Marquette in the first round of the Big East tournament.

Previous season

The Red Storm finished the 2014–15 season with a record of 21–12, 10–8 in Big East play to finish in fifth place in conference. They lost in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament to Providence. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost in the second round to San Diego State.

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Jamal Branch	0	G	6'3"	169	Senior	Kansas City, Missouri	Graduated
Phil Greene	1	G	6'2"	187	Senior	Chicago, Illinois	Graduated
Myles Stewart	2	G	6'5"	180	Freshman	Los Angeles, California	Transferred to Arizona State
D'Angelo Harrison	11	G	6'4"	202	Senior	Missouri City, Texas	Graduated
Chris Obekpa	12	F/C	6'10"	236	Junior	Makurdi, Nigeria	Transferred to UNLV
Sir'Dominic Pointer	15	G/F	6'5"	192	Senior	Detroit, Michigan	Graduated Drafted in 2015 NBA draft
Jay Henderson	22	G	6'5"	180	Freshman	Orlando, Florida	Transferred to Louisville[1]
Rysheed Jordan	23	G	6'4"	193	Sophomore	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Drafted in 2015 NBA Development League Draft
Adonis De La Rosa	31	C	7'0"	322	Freshman	Bronx, New York	Transferred to Williston State
Joey De La Rosa	34	C	6'11"	249	Senior	Bronx, New York	Transferred to LU–Belleville
Khadim Ndiaye	35	F	6'6"	195	Senior	Queens, New York	Graduated

2015 recruiting class

College recruiting information

Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Marcus LoVett Jr. PG	Fort Wayne, ID	Morgan Park High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	May 21, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    (80)
Kassoum Yakwe PF	Bamako, Mali	Our Savior New American (N.Y)	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Aug 23, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    (80)
Yankuba Sima C	Girona, Spain	Elev8 Sports Institute	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Apr 13, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    (79)
Malik Ellison SG	Voorhees, NJ	Life Center Academy	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	May 1, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    (77)
Federico Mussini PG	Reggio Emilia, Italy	Liceo Scientifico Aldo Moro	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	Jun 29, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    247Sports:    (NR)
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.

Transfer additions

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Durand Johnson	G/F	6'6"	210	Graduate student	Baltimore, Maryland	grad student transfer from Pittsburgh (1 yr immediate eligibility)
Ron Mvouika	G	6'6"	210	Graduate student	Paris, France	grad student transfer from Missouri State (1 yr immediate eligibility)
Tariq Owens	F	6'11"	190	Sophomore	Odenton, MD	transfer from Tennessee (3 yr eligibility remaining)
Darien Williams	F	6'8"	225	Junior	Cerritos, California	junior college transfer from City College of San Francisco (2 yrs immediate eligibility)

2016 Recruiting class

College recruiting information (2016)
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Shamorie Ponds PG	Brooklyn, NY	Thomas Jefferson High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Sep 29, 2015
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    (88)
Richard Freudenberg SF	Munich, Germany	Bayern Munich	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Feb 4, 2016
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    (NR)
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.

Roster

2015–16 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Malik Ellison 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Life Center Academy Voorhees, NJ F 1 Amar Alibegović 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) So Istituto Tecnico Minerva Rome, Italy F 2 Christian Jones 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) RS Jr IMG Academy Arlington, TX G 3 Marcus LoVett Jr. (I)  6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Morgan Park Fort Wayne, IN G 4 Federico Mussini 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr Liceo Scientifico Aldo Moro Reggio Emilia, Italy G/F 5 Durand Johnson 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) GS Brewster Academy Pittsburgh Baltimore, MD G 10 Felix Balamou 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr Our Savior New American School Conakry, Guinea F 11 Tariq Owens  6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So Mount Zion Prep Tennessee Odenton, MD G 12 Elijah Holifield (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Pace Academy Atlanta, GA F 14 Kassoum Yakwe 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Our Savior New American School Bamako, Mali G 23 Abdul Dial (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr Cardinal Newman West Palm Beach, Fla. G/F 24 Ron Mvouika 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) GS Huntington Prep Missouri State Paris, France C 35 Yankuba Sima 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Fr Elev8 Sports Institute Girona, Spain F 45 Darien Williams 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr St. John Bosco City College of San Francisco Cerritos, CA	Head coach Chris Mullin (St. John's) Assistant coach(es) Barry Rohrssen Matt Abdelmassih Greg St. Jean Mitch Richmond (special asst.) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
Nov 4, 2015* 7:00 pm		St. Thomas Aquinas	L 58–90		16 – Mussini	11 – Jones	3 – Tied	Carnesecca Arena (4,058) Queens, NY
Nov 7, 2015* 4:00 pm		Sonoma State	W 64–46		16 – Sima	16 – Sima	1 – Tied	Carnesecca Arena (3,902) Queens, NY
Non-conference regular season
Nov 13, 2015* 6:00 pm, FS1		Wagner	W 66–57	1–0	18 – Mussini	8 – Tied	3 – Tied	Carnesecca Arena (4,677) Queens, NY
Nov 16, 2015* 7:00 pm, FS1		UMBC Maui Invitational opening round	W 75–53	2–0	18 – Mussini	9 – Sima	6 – Mussini	Carnesecca Arena (4,098) Queens, NY
Nov 19, 2015* 7:00 pm, FS1		Rutgers Gavitt Tipoff Games	W 61–59	3–0	13 – Tied	11 – Balamou	7 – Balamou	Carnesecca Arena (4,540) Queens, NY
Nov 23, 2015* 2:30 pm, ESPN2		vs. No. 19 Vanderbilt Maui Invitational quarterfinals	L 55–92	3–1	14 – Mussini	5 – Jones	2 – Mussini	Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) Maui, HI
Nov 24, 2015* 2:00 pm, ESPN2		vs. No. 13 Indiana Maui Invitational consolation second round	L 73–83	3–2	17 – Tied	7 – Sima	4 – Balamou	Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) Maui, HI
Nov 25, 2015* 2:30 pm, ESPNU		vs. Chaminade Maui Invitational 7th place game	W 100–93	4–2	24 – Mussini	11 – Jones	6 – Mussini	Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) Maui, HI
Dec 2, 2015* 7:00 pm		at Fordham	L 57–73	4–3	14 – Balamou	5 – Tied	5 – Balamou	Rose Hill Gymnasium (3,068) Bronx, NY
Dec 6, 2015* 11 am, FS1		St. Francis Brooklyn Madison Square Garden Holiday Festival	W 63–56	5–3	19 – Johnson	10 – Sima	6 – Mussini	Madison Square Garden (7,196) New York City, NY
Dec 9, 2015* 5:00 pm, FS1		Niagara	W 48–44	6–3	11 – Mussini	8 – Mvouika	4 – Balamou	Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY
Dec 13, 2015* 12:00 pm, FS1		Syracuse	W 84–72	7–3	17 – Mussini	9 – Alibegovic	5 – Mvouika	Madison Square Garden (13,473) New York City, NY
Dec 18, 2015* 7:00 pm, FS1		Incarnate Word	L 51–73	7–4	15 – Johnson	6 – Johnson	3 – Tied	Carnesecca Arena (4,120) Queens, NY
Dec 20, 2015* 12:00 pm, FS1		NJIT	L 74–83	7–5	20 – Mussini	14 – Sima	4 – Mvouika	Carnesecca Arena (4,414) Queens, NY
Dec 22, 2015* 9:00 pm, CBSSN		vs. No. 25 South Carolina Hall of Fame Shootout	L 61–75	7–6	16 – Johnson	5 – Johnson	3 – Mussini	Mohegan Sun Arena (2,355) Uncasville, CT
Big East regular season
Dec 31, 2015 2:00 pm, FS1		Creighton	L 70–80	7–7 (0–1)	17 – Ellison	9 – Jones	5 – Balamou	Carnesecca Arena (4,633) Queens, NY
Jan 2, 2016 3:30 pm, FS1		at No. 12 Providence Big East New Year's Marathon	L 65–83	7–8 (0–2)	14 – Sima	8 – Sima	3 – Balamou	Dunkin' Donuts Center (12,410) Providence, RI
Jan 6, 2016 9:00 pm, FS1		No. 10 Xavier	L 66–74	7–9 (0–3)	19 – Tied	5 – Tied	3 – Johnson	Carnesecca Arena (4,168) Queens, NY
Jan 9, 2016 2:00 pm, FSN		at Marquette	L 75–81	7–10 (0–4)	18 – Johnson	11 – Yakwe	5 – Mvouika	BMO Harris Bradley Center (13,468) Milwaukee, WI
Jan 13, 2016 6:30 pm, FS1		Georgetown	L 73–93	7–11 (0–5)	15 – Mvouika	8 – Yakwe	4 – Mussini	Madison Square Garden (7,837) New York City, NY
Jan 16, 2016 12:00 pm, FS1		at No. 23 Butler	L 58–78	7–12 (0–6)	14 – Mussini	8 – Yakwe	2 – Tied	Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,144) Indianapolis, IN
Jan 24, 2016 3:45 pm, CBSSN		Marquette	L 73–78	7–13 (0–7)	20 – Johnson	8 – Yakwe	3 – Tied	Carnesecca Arena (1,032) Queens, NY
Jan 27, 2016 7:00 pm, FS1		at Seton Hall	L 60–79	7–14 (0–8)	15 – Jones	10 – Yakwe	6 – Ellison	Prudential Center (6,767) Newark, NJ
Jan 31, 2016 12:00 pm, FOX		No. 6 Villanova	L 53–68	7–15 (0–9)	13 – Johnson	10 – Mvouika	6 – Mvouika	Madison Square Garden (12,713) New York City, NY
Feb 3, 2016 6:30 pm, FS1		at No. 6 Xavier	L 83–90	7–16 (0–10)	20 – Balamou	7 – Yakwe	3 – Tied	Cintas Center (10,250) Cincinnati, OH
Feb 6, 2016 4:30 pm, FSN		Butler	L 56–89	7–17 (0–11)	11 – Yakwe	5 – Sima	3 – Sima	Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY
Feb 8, 2016 7:00 pm, FS1		at Georgetown	L 67–92	7–18 (0–12)	14 – Jones	9 – Jones	3 – Ellison	Verizon Center (5,369) Washington, D.C.
Feb 13, 2016 8:00 pm, CBSSN		at No. 1 Villanova	L 63–73	7–19 (0–13)	18 – Alibegovic	6 – Alibegovic	5 – Ellison	Wells Fargo Center (18,052) Philadelphia, PA
Feb 17, 2016 8:00 pm, CBSSN		DePaul	W 80–65	8–19 (1–13)	18 – Johnson	11 – Yakwe	5 – Balamou	Carnesecca Arena (5,010) Queens, NY
Feb 21, 2016 12:00 pm, FS1		Seton Hall	L 61–62	8–20 (1–14)	16 – Yakwe	15 – Yakwe	3 – Ellison	Madison Square Garden (13,204) New York City, NY
Feb 25, 2016 9:00 pm, FS1		at DePaul	L 75–83	8–21 (1–15)	20 – Mvouika	6 – Tied	7 – Balamou	Allstate Arena (4,817) Rosemont, IL
Feb 28, 2016 2:30 pm, FS1		at Creighton	L 59–100	8–22 (1–16)	17 – Jones	6 – Johnson	4 – Tied	CenturyLink Center (17,351) Omaha, NE
Mar 5, 2016 12:30 pm, FS1		Providence	L 76–90	8–23 (1–17)	15 – Johnson	12 – Jones	5 – Tied	Madison Square Garden (10,079) New York City, NY
Big East tournament
Mar 9, 2016 9:30 pm, FS1		vs. Marquette First round	L 93–101	8–24	29 – Jones	7 – Jones	5 – Ellison	Madison Square Garden (12,604) New York City, NY
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.